Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition Reviews
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition is a tremendous achievement and one of the finest games you can currently play in the Switch 2 library. Offering up an enormous and densely packed open world, tons of tough boss encounters to overcome, a huge DLC endgame expansion, and presenting it all with great performance, there are few (if any) games in the console's library that can match it in spectacle, difficulty, and raw quality.If you've ever been a Soulslike fan or are simply looking for a deep and challenging game that takes full advantage of the Switch 2's power, you owe it to yourself to pick this up whenever you can. Elden Ring deserves the praise it's received as one of the games that defined a generation, and it feels right at home on Nintendo's handheld.
It's honestly hard to "review" a game that's been widely praised as Elden Ring four years after the fact. Ultimately, only one thing matters here with the Tarnished Edition: how is the performance? The game is most certainly taking some shortcuts here to get the game running on Switch 2 hardware. That said, there's a chance you'll only notice those shortcuts if you're actively looking for them. Elden Ring Tarnished Edition is one of, if not the, best third-party games on the Nintendo Switch 2.
In any case, we're talking about Elden Ring . It's like stepping into the Middle Lands and being captivated by the light of the Golden Tree. I planned to play just enough for this review, but I've ended up completely hooked again. It was a phenomenal game four years ago... and it's still as amazing as the first day.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Switch 2 owners are about to discover the world of Elden Ring. If they've never experienced it elsewhere, then the magic that stretches through every fibre of the game remains intact, and in handheld especially, offers a thoroughly enjoyable version of the game. If you've played elsewhere, however, the performance downgrades may be too much to take.
If you haven’t played Elden Ring, and the Tarnished Edition on the Switch 2 has enticed you, please make the leap. I envy you seeing it all for the first time. If you have the game on other consoles or PC and don’t own something like a Steam deck or ROG Ally, the Elden Ring you love is there and intact, but with the visual downgrade that you probably expect. In the end, more Elden Ring is a very good thing.
Elden Ring Tarnished Edition turns out to be a much more convincing conversion than initial tests had led one to fear, successfully bringing the Interregnum to Switch 2 with technical compromises that, while undeniable, never truly compromise the experience.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Elden Ring is still a masterpiece, even on Nintendo Switch 2. Yes, there are inevitably a few technical compromises, but nothing that really spoils the experience — apart from the frame rate drops, which can make certain sequences harder to read, especially in handheld mode. It's a perfectly solid port, one that may not take advantage of the Nintendo Switch 2's specific features, but that gives millions of players the chance to discover it in good conditions, and in the end that's all we were asking of it.
Review in French | Read full review
Elden Ring is still a masterpiece, even on Nintendo Switch 2. Yes, there are inevitably a few technical compromises, but nothing that really spoils the experience — apart from the frame rate drops, which can make certain sequences harder to read, especially in handheld mode. It's a perfectly solid port, one that may not take advantage of the Nintendo Switch 2's specific features, but that gives millions of players the chance to discover it in good conditions, and in the end that's all we were asking of it.
Review in French | Read full review
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition is surprisingly solid on the Nintendo Switch 2. While it won’t match the resolution or frame rate of bigger, more powerful platforms, it still delivers fantastic gameplay with plenty of extra content.
While it feels like the impact of Breath of the Wild is waning as the open world genre starts to stagnate again, Elden Ring stands out as not only an achievement in FromSoftware’s hall of fame, but also as an open-world RPG. Elden Ring is without a doubt, FromSoft’s most ambitious undertaking yet, and like Dark Souls before it, I believe it will leave a permanent mark on both the open-world genre and the games industry in general.
Elden Ring, including its expansion, Shadow of the Erdtree, is a stone-cold masterpiece, and while the Tarnished Edition is imperfect, it still shines brightly.
The price aside, however, there is little to complain about with Elden Ring Tarnished Edition. This is one of the best games of this generation, if not of all time.
With two new classes exclusive to the Switch 2, FromSoftware brings the best day-one performance of Elden Ring I’ve ever seen. While the image quality, brightness, and ability to change the font size were lacking, this port runs incredibly well!
A technically proficient port that is easily the best way to touch grace on the go.
Elden Ring Tarnished Edition delivers an impressive technical achievement for FromSoftware on the Nintendo Switch 2. Beyond bringing a massive open world to a handheld system, this dedicated port offers excellent visuals and smooth performance that ensure an enjoyable experience.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
But also, in acknowledging that the Switch 2 port of Elden Ring isn’t quite up to the standard of the game playing on the PlayStation 5, this review sounds more negative than it should. The differences are a rounding error, and what is important is that this masterpiece runs perfectly well on a very portable console.
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition is arguably the weakest version of an incredible game, but the compromises aren't enough to undermine the experience. It's difficult to think of another Switch 2 game that matches its scale and sheer amount of content. If you enjoy Souls-style games and haven't yet played Elden Ring, you owe it to yourself to try it. As long as you can accept the technical compromises, Tarnished Edition is an excellent way to experience the game for the first time.
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition is an excellent port of one of the best games of recent years, which, despite its massive scale, runs and looks surprisingly well on the Nintendo Switch 2. FromSoftware has made excellent use of the extra time to optimise the game, meaning we can now comfortably explore the Lands Between virtually anywhere. If you have a Switch 2, Elden Ring isn’t just worth playing – it’s a must-play.
Review in Polish | Read full review
Elden Ring’s captivating magic is in your hands, but there’s one catch: its FPS could throw you off in this brutal adventure, especially coming from other platforms
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition on Switch 2 is still the FromSoftware masterpiece fans know and love, but it comes with some new technical limitations. With the full base game, Shadow of the Erdtree, and the Tarnished Pack, it offers a complete package for newcomers while retaining its mysterious storytelling, exceptional world-building, precise combat, and phenomenal soundtrack. However, Switch 2 simply cannot deliver the best version of Elden Ring. Frame-rate drops are noticeable in crowded areas and during some boss fights, while the quality of distant scenery is lower and visual issues become more apparent in Docked Mode. Handheld play is appealing, but the console’s weight and the limitations of the Joy-Cons make it less than ideal for some of the game’s tougher encounters.
Review in Persian | Read full review